PASS IT ON
Only take heed to yourself, and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and your grandchildren (Deut 4:9 NKJV)
One of our Sunday school class members pointed out yesterday the following statement from our lesson on Jesus as Messiah: “….for always the Christian faith is one generation away from extinction. We must rightly answer and confess in response to this supreme question: ‘But who do you say that I am?’” (Cokesbury Adult Bible Studies, Vol. 40, No. 4) We went on to discuss how much truth rested in that statement, and we acknowledged the awesome responsibility we have to continue to pass on the message of our faith.
Deuteronomy 4:9, a scripture from my morning devotional, again reminded me of this discussion. The Israelites were commanded by Moses to keep the statutes he had given them that he received from the Lord. He told them to pass it on to their children and their grandchildren, basically showing them that their faith was only a generation away from extinction.
Presently in America we are experiencing the fallout from the poor financial practices of our current adult generations. It occurred to me recently that the more generations removed we are from the Great Depression, the more poorly we understand and practice saving money for hard times. I now see the similarity with the extinction of financial planning and the extinction of our faith. If we fail to share our faith with others it will die out and leave in its place a society reeling from the fallout of a lost, superficial, godless society.
Sharing our faith can be intimidating. We are most comfortable sharing our faith with others who already believe as we believe. We need this kind of fellowship, in fact, through scripture we are called to this kind of fellowship (Colossians 3:16), however, we have an equal call to spread the Word. “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. (Mark 16:15 KJV)” When we take the initiative to share God with another, God will give us the strength and the ability to follow through.
There are many ways we can share our faith, aside from the words we speak. The way we live our lives and the things we do to show love to others speaks volumes about our faith. Perhaps it’s time to step outside our comfort zones and find new creative ways to share our faith. Let’s not let our faith be the best kept secret!
Heavenly Father, thank you for your Word and your plan of salvation. Help us to step outside our comfort zones and share you with the World. Give us the ability and the desire to keep our faith from extinction. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
One of our Sunday school class members pointed out yesterday the following statement from our lesson on Jesus as Messiah: “….for always the Christian faith is one generation away from extinction. We must rightly answer and confess in response to this supreme question: ‘But who do you say that I am?’” (Cokesbury Adult Bible Studies, Vol. 40, No. 4) We went on to discuss how much truth rested in that statement, and we acknowledged the awesome responsibility we have to continue to pass on the message of our faith.
Deuteronomy 4:9, a scripture from my morning devotional, again reminded me of this discussion. The Israelites were commanded by Moses to keep the statutes he had given them that he received from the Lord. He told them to pass it on to their children and their grandchildren, basically showing them that their faith was only a generation away from extinction.
Presently in America we are experiencing the fallout from the poor financial practices of our current adult generations. It occurred to me recently that the more generations removed we are from the Great Depression, the more poorly we understand and practice saving money for hard times. I now see the similarity with the extinction of financial planning and the extinction of our faith. If we fail to share our faith with others it will die out and leave in its place a society reeling from the fallout of a lost, superficial, godless society.
Sharing our faith can be intimidating. We are most comfortable sharing our faith with others who already believe as we believe. We need this kind of fellowship, in fact, through scripture we are called to this kind of fellowship (Colossians 3:16), however, we have an equal call to spread the Word. “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. (Mark 16:15 KJV)” When we take the initiative to share God with another, God will give us the strength and the ability to follow through.
There are many ways we can share our faith, aside from the words we speak. The way we live our lives and the things we do to show love to others speaks volumes about our faith. Perhaps it’s time to step outside our comfort zones and find new creative ways to share our faith. Let’s not let our faith be the best kept secret!
Heavenly Father, thank you for your Word and your plan of salvation. Help us to step outside our comfort zones and share you with the World. Give us the ability and the desire to keep our faith from extinction. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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